Greasing apparatus



` Filed April 29, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 a@ 4f/n@ w( MZATTORNEY C. HARRIS GREAS ING APPARATUS May l0, 1932.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 29, 1930 INVENTOR May 10, 1932. c. HARRIS 1,858,155

GREASING APPARATUS Filed Apri-1 29, 1930 S'sheets-sheet 3 mum Patented May 10,1932

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UNITED) STATES PATENT oi-'Fles cmov nanars, or euromunt. omo, assreuon To rm: cnrcnnurr aan;

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connu, or CINCINNATI. omo; a coarona'rrolr. 0F omo cansino APPARATUS Application led April 29,

such as the fittings, transmission cases, etc.`

The type of apparatus herein concerned is in the form of a unit which usually includes a reservoir, a power source and a high pressure pump mounted on a carriage, this pump adaptedtodischarge the grease through a conduit, which conduit includes a suitable The primary object of this invention is to provide a high lpressure grease supply apparatus which is exceedingly compact, therefore, takingliittle space and being relatively light for ease in moving the same about a greasing station and to further provide an apparatus in which the units as the power, transmission and pump are aligned for easy assemblage. t

It`is another object of this invention to provide a balanced and otherwise improved driving transmission for the apparatus between the power source and the pumping piston.

ltl is another object of this invention to provide an improved form of intake port between the reservoir and the high pressure cylinder for causing a positive .feed of the grease into the path of the pumping piston after each retraction thereof. It is important that the replacement of displaced grease in the ing piston movesrelatively fast.

vide animprovedpiston for a pump of this nature which includes a forwardly extending tip or teat for'unseating a check valve at the end of the active pumping stroke whereby-if there is any air locked in the pumping cyln inder tending to compress and remain therein and thus lock the gun, the valve ,will be. positively unseated by engagement of the tip` or teat therewith. Thus upon each retraction of the piston, it is arranged that any air locked in the pumping cylinder is permitted' to escape via the discharge conduit.

Furthermore it is an object to provide a minimum area for the check valve seat so that the valve wiil seat and unseat relatively easimo. semi an. 44am.

`ly and quietly despite the constantly existing back pressure in the grease' dischar'geline.

Another object is to provide a two piece piston permitting laterallloating thereof in case of disalignment of the transmission unit and the pump. Another object of this invention -is to pro- Wide an arrangement at the discharge end of the high pressure pumping cylinder for causing any particles tending totbe lodged under the valve toibe displaced rapidly by f clearing the .space around the valve permitting a direct lateral discharge of the grease from the region between the valve and its scat for thoroughly flushing any abrasive particles from the engag-:ng surfaces.

It is another object of this invention to provide in combination with the greasedispensl,ing apparatus, a' check valve and a safety valve of improved design and of improved mounting for rapid insertion of the same into the apparatus.

Further objects and advantages will be more fully set forth in a description 'o f the f i I accompanying drawings, in which: v

Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the pumping apparatus of this invention. Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2, Figure 1, looking downwardly into the i interior of the reservoir and pump.' l

Figure 3 1s *an enlarged sectional view l taken on line 3-3,'Figure 1, illustrating the cylinder be exceedingly rapid since the pumptransmission and pump in detail.

t 'Y Y. Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on line Another object of this invention is to pro-v` 4-4, Figure 1, further; detailing the transmission and also showing the construction of the'carriagesof thea' paratus. A

Figure 5 is an enlarge sectional view taken on linel 5 5, Figurel, showing the relation of the' reservoir and pumping cylinder.

Figure 6 is a sectional View taken on line 66, Figure 3, detailing the construction of' Broadly speaking, the apparatus comprises a carriage or truck 10, a power squrce such .1

i through as a motor 11, a transmission 12, and a lpump 13, the last three mentioned mechanisms, or

devices being mounted in alignmentlongitudinally of and on the carria e. A reservoir 1 5 14 is mounted on and above t e pump and a `discharge conduit 15 extends from the ump being in flexible connection therewit by means of a universal joint 16, this discharge 1 conduit including a 1 adjacent its outer end, which .outer endy is adapted to be coupled to a fitting' v(not shown). f

j The truck or chassis 10 ofthe apparatus provides a flat top and ribbed underside which ribs18, toward the forward end of the truck, an axle 19 is mounted.

pair of wheels 20 is mounted on this axle. A caster 21 is fixed beneath the rear end of the truck permitting steering thereof. A

90 handle 22v is providedY at the rear end of the truck consisting of a bent rod having its ends secured in lugs 23 cast at eachside of the truck, this handle risingv at each side of the reservoir and straddling the same, and providing a rearwardly extending reservoir encircling portion 24 at the top which the operator grasps for manipulating the equipj ment, this handle portion being at a convenient elevation.

The electric motor 11 in this case is bolted upon the forward end of the truck and a terminal box 25 is provided, attached to the truck and a terminal box 25 is provided, attached to the underside of the truck just be- A 55 neath the motor. Electrical energy is s upplied to the terminal box from any convenient source by means of encased electrical leads 26`extending from the terminal box and hav- Y ing a screw plug 27 xed at the outer ends 4 thereof. Appropriate encased electrical connections 28 extend from the terminal box to the motor and encased electrical connections 29 extend from the terminal box to the control switch at the outer end of the grease dis- 45 charge line. e v

The stub shaft 30 of the motor has a universal joint 31 attached to its rearwardly extending end, this joint also being attached to the extendingl end of a worm shaft 32'fjour- 5 nalled in the respective walls of a transmission casin 33. This worm shaft is aligned with themotor shaft longitudinally of the carria e. The transmission casing 33 is bolted to t e carriage .or truck and is open at its 55 underside whereby the truck lsupporting surface forms` a bottom closyre for the transmission casing 33.

` A wormv wheel 34 is mounted immediately below and in mesh with the worm of the worm Q0 shaft 32 on 'a cross shaft 35 journalled inthe y respective sidewalls of the transmission casing. The surface of the truck is depressed or hollowed out as at 36 just below the worm wheel to provide ample clearance for the gear 65 and a grease well, a plug 37 being provided motor control switch 17' at the bottom 4of the well. forv draining the same. p

Referring to Fi re 3, it will be observed that the'worm w eel is eccentrically journalled on 'the shaft and 'provides a hub 38 at each side, each hub constituting a bear ing stud fora respective link or pitman 39. The outer ends of these pitmen straddle the end of a plunger 40, being connected thereto by means of a cross pin41 transversing the Lpitmen and the plunger. This plunger 1s mounted in the rear wall of the tr nsmission casing in the same vertical plane with the motor shaft, worm shaft and the worm wheel.J The arrangement of the pitmen, one

A at each side of the worm wheel, provides a well balanced drive and there is no tendency for the worm wheel to twist on its shaft.

The transmission casing 33 is bolted to the pump casing as well as to the platform of the truck. The connection to the pump casing is by means of bolts 42 extendin through flanges 43 on the adjacent ends o the cas'- ings. A cylinder element 44 is mounted in the pump casing 45 in alignment or substantial alignment with the plunger 40 of the transmission unit and contains a piston 46 attached to this plunger 40. A funnel-shaped intake opening 47 extends through the pump casing downwardly to a s ecial passagewa or port about the cylinder. The funne shaped intake opens into the reservoir 14 which is in the form of a circular metal bucket 48 bolted to' the top of thle pump casing. This reservoir casing or bucket has a lid 49 on its upper end for filling purposes and a handle 50 is provided on this lid.

A follower plate 5l rests 'under force of gravity on the top of the rgrease contained in the reservoir. It will be readily apparent that this follower plate can be either gravity urged or spring pressed depending upon the viscosity of the grease or `lubricant being dispensed. The follower plate shown includes a handle 52 on its upper side for raisingit and is a relatively [lat circular plate with an upwardly extending rim 53.A The function of this plate is to strip the'grease or lubricant from therside walls of the containeran'd to keep it uniformlv distributed or packed, thereby preventing the vformation of a pocket centrally of the reservoir, which might otherwisebe formed by the extraction of grease from` the central region thereof downwardly. The bottom of the grease reservoir is formed of a steel plate-54 conically inclined downwardly and having an opening 55 in itscenter. The margin of this plate opening rests upon the pump casing on the margin of the conicalopening and the opening of the bottom is of Ythe same diameter as the upper end of the conical opening.

A clamping ring 56 rests upon the upper surface of the margin of the bottom and is bolted to a circular upper, flange, of thev pump casing b means of bolts 57 traversing the flange o the casing, the marginal flange' of the reservoir bottom and the ring. The pump casing is bolted to the truck platform and includes a pairfof laterally-extending le? 58 for thispurpose.

he pump cylinder 44 is headedas at .59

land is an insertedlelement, being inserted from the rear end of the pum casing through a bore thereof and has an mwardly flanged nut 60 enga ed on its forwardly ex-k tending Screw lthrea ed, end for clamping the element in the bore. The head is adaptedfto carry a universal vconduit jointas will be later described The bore in the flange of the nut-60 pro# vides a snug fit about the piston 46 extendingfrom the lplunger anda packing 61 is he d in posit-ion'within thecylinder about the piston by means of thenut.

The pistonand plungerare flexibly conj nected so that the piston and plunger may float laterally if the respective casings arev not perfectly connected and the piston a'nd plunger perfectly aligned. The piston 46 has a head 62 engaged in a recess 63 in the end of the plunger 40. An inwardly flanged nut i .h1 1d. and a greater-diameter for the bore in the flange of the nut, than thateof the piston As will be seen in Figures 1 and 5; a groove 65 is provided in the pump casing'enclrc'ling the cylinder 44. This groove is an extension of. the` conical passageway providing that the grease is distributed entirely around the cylinder at the point of grease intake. To

- provide a suilicient clearance for' flow `of grease into the bore of the 'cylinder in the path of the piston, the cylinder is-radially j slotted as at 66 adjacent the aforesaid groove.

' This slot may be of'any circumferential di- Inension or spread, desired, it being preera ble to open the cylinder as much ,asj ossible.

" This slot is widened out by tapering its Walls as at 67 (see Figure 1). It will readily be seenthat the retardation ofgrease flow is reducedfto a minimum-` The grease enters the pump casing, moving into the funnelshapedv passageway and into the funnelshaped port in the cylinder, novement into this port being possible fromveach side as 1 well as -from aboveby way ofthe'agroove-.l A screen '68 is provided for filtering foreign matter `from the grease aait passes through the funnel-shaped passageway,

ing mounted in an annular groove 69 formed in the wall of the conical opening.

1As shown in Figuresvl and 3, the piston is retracted beyond the slot 66 by theaction of the eccentric transmission at which, time the grease rapidly moves 4into the bore ahead of the piston. To..l prevent sucking 'back orretraction of the grease inthe discharge conduit upon the 'return stroke of. the piston',-v

a check valve 70 is inserted in thecylinder in front of the piston. Thischeck valve comprises a sleeve casing 7 1 carrying a seat 72 atl its forward end. The valve 70 is urged against the seat by 'means of a coil spring 73 vunder compression within the sleeve, the -spring being maintained under compression andthe sleeve or valve casing 71 in'position by means of a nut 74 screwed into the head end of the cylinder.

A washer '75. is inserted under the check valve seat', lying against the shoulder be` tween lthe'check valve chamber and the pumping cylinder bore. The valve seat isin the form of a disc secured in an internal groove 76 in the extreme end f the sleeve by any conventional means. .The sleeve endabout the seat has a plurality of slots 77 extending inwardly past the seat a'short distance; The engaged surface 78'of the valve seat or true valve seating surface is slightlyv raised from the surface-of the disc and isofextremely small diameter. ,v A

The grease expelling end of the piston carries a stud or teat 79 axially disposed and extremely small in proportion to the size of the` piston. This stud upon completion ,of aA for-l ward stroke of the piston passes through a central bore 8O in the seat and directly engages thevalve for positively unseating it.

f The bore in the valve seat is relatively small and the stud -is somewhat smaller for permitting passage of grease throughthe, bore ,of the seat when the stud has .entered the same as shown in Figure'7.

Theengaged surface 786` of the seat is i lsmall asv possible for the following reason.

`The checkvalve .as has been stated, lis urged vgainst the seatV y means offa spring, and vit is further urged -against the seat bythe back pressure of grease whichhas been pumped past the valve. The valve is a headed device with the body thereof.surrounded bythe coils of the spring engaging theshoulder between the body and the head. It will be apparent that'theback pressurev becomes quite considerable and tends to lock the valve upon its Isean-.its enfgagement only being broken by heavy pumping pressures or by direct .Contact .of the stud orv teat therewith.- rIt is desirable' to lessen the back pressure on the valve as much as `possible andmaking the engagedseat surface of. small area accomplishesthis result. `This surface is reduced to an area jus'tsuiiicient to Vseal p the discharge opening illthe seatele-- the valve seat, 'engages a portion of the outer area of the valve head on its seating side. Lessening this pressure eliminates-the detrimental pounding of the valveand the clicking which is usually ap arent in a high pressure valve. The forced engagement or displacement of the valve by means of the stud positively releases any airpocketed between the valve and the pumping lpiston in spite of any great .back pressure. If the air con'- tinued to be present in the pumpin cylinder, the result would be thatl the poc wouldpijeclude the entrance of ase` and theair would merely be compresse each time the piston reciprocated without any grease discharge. i 5

A by-pass or safety valve, generall shown at 81, is disposed in the line beyond t e check valve so that clogging of the line or any other cause normally creating pressure of dangerous proportions does not harm the apparatus. As shown in Figures 3` and 5, this yby-pass valve permits the escape of the pumped grease back to the reservoir. This y-pass valve 81 is of exactly the same construetionas the check valve.

The check valve sleeve 71 has radial passageways 82 toward its rear or discharge end entering an annular space or clearance groove 83 around the valve sleeve and a radial pasthis annular `clearf sageway 84 extends from alice into a bored boss 85 extending laterally from the head of the cylinder. From this point the passageway extends through the central bore of the valve seat of the safety pumping :soA

' To prevent Jrotation of the -valve against the head ofthe safety valve. When a predetermined pressure, approximating 4000 pounds per uare inch, is reached in the grease discharge ine, this valve opens and the grease flows around the same and passes through a.y radial opening 86 in the sleeve of the safety valve through a tube 87 and into the pump casing through the passageway 88 extending parallel with the upwardly as shown in Figure 5 into the res` ervoir, or more speciically, into the intake openingo the pumping casing. The sleeve and spring of the safety valve is held in posit'ion in its socket or bore by means of a nut 89 threaded vinto the bore and igainst the end ofthe sleeve.` I

The head ofthe nut 7 4 which is screwed against the cking 90 ina large bore in its conduit cou ling element 92 is held in this vconcave pac ing-by means of an internally flanged-'nut 93 screwed onto'l the end et` the ypreviously described nut.

couplingelement 92. byway of the ball con'- et of air cylinder for a distance and then sleeve of the check valveI carries.

ose i5-ami assainir plingle ement, the sections of this casing 'bein eld together and clamped on thecouphng element by means of screws 95. Each section has a forwardly extending arm 96, which arms straddle a in 97 protrudin from the pump casingl slight amount o rotation is permitted in this connection which rotation is necessary with the lateral movement of the hose and couplin in the socket. The urpose of the device or preventing rotation of the hose is' to preclude entan lement of the electrical connectors 29 attac ed parallel to the hose by means of clips'98 and extendin to the switch 17 mounted on the outer en ofthe hose. Appropriate coupling devices 99 and further, flexible connections 100 may be provided beyond the switch as l sion unit, and drawbolts connecting the transmission unit to the pump, said bolts disposed in parallelism with.- the motor shaft and pumping piston.

2. In a device of the class described, a.

pump casing, Aa pump cylinder'element mounted therein, a reservoir in communication with said cylinder, a piston in the cylinder,means for reciprocating said piston, a funnel-shaped intake opening in said pump casing extending from the reservoir to the` cylinder, vand a passageway extendin from the intake opening entirely around t e c linder, said cylinder having a transverse s ot therein defining a passageway from the en circling passageway to the bore of the cylinder and to the path of reciprocationiof the pumping piston.

3. A lubricating apparatus, comprising, a

pump casinga cylinder mounted therein, a

piston in said cylinder, means for reciprocating said piston, a shoulder vformed in the bore -of said cylinder toward the discharge end thereof, a valve seatv engaged against -said shoulder, a sleeve engaged against said seat, avalve engaged against the contact sur-. face of said seat, a spring engaging said valve and a .nut screw threaded onto the dis-V Acharge` end of the cylinder bore engaging said sleeve and said spring.

Inwitiiess whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name. 

